Nearly 60% voting in Bihar LS polls

Vaishali: People queue up to cast their votes during the sixth phase of 2019 Lok Sabha elections, in Vaishali, Bihar on May 12, 2019. . Image Source: IANS News

Patna, May 12 : Ignoring the scorching summer heat, 59.38 per cent of the 1.38 crore electorate in eight of Bihar's 40 Lok Sabha seats, which went to the polls in the sixth phase of polling on Sunday, had cast their vote till 6 p.m., officials here said.

Voting in the state's Bhojpuri-speaking northern belt was held amidst tight security and passed off without any violence, except for some clashes between supporters of rival parties, as per officials at the police headquarters here.

A polling official in the Sheohar constituency was seriously injured when a bullet accidentally fired by a home guard hit him in the stomach, a police official said. The injured official was rushed to hospital.

Voters will decide the fate of 127 candidates in the Gopalganj, Siwan, Maharajganj, East Champaran, West Champaran, Valmiki Nagar, Sheohar and Vaishali constituencies.

Long queues were seen at polling booths in rural as well as urban pockets of these constituencies despite heat wave-like conditions. Women were seen in large numbers outside polling booths in the initial three hours of voting.

"In the initial polling, women in large numbers were seen standing outside polling booths. They aimed to escape the scorching sun and hot winds later in the day," an official said.

Voting was delayed in a few polling booths across the eight seats due to malfunctioning of the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).